iTrek 14 vs. i14T

I´m owner of a 2007 I14T, I´m looking for replacement for several reasons.

I´m not sure that the SUP design of iTrek fulfills my needs. I use to paddle on lakes or the sea at windspeeds up to 4bft. I have the feeling that the boat design of the i14T performs better on small waves than the iTrek. Does anybody have experience with the iTrek on small waves?

I looked in several shops to get an "old" I14T at discount price but i14T is sold out everywhere. Have there been serious quality issues with the late i14T leading to discontinue production before launching a replacement? I read something about failing glued seams but the seams should not be worse than on my old 2007 boat? Maybe this is only an issue of overinflating by an electric pump, I had only the old ingenious hand pump (79052003), for me it was difficult to overinflate the chambers.

Old posts here document a lot of seam problems, especially with the bow hatch design which was first phased out in the 14 and then the 12. I think they phased out scuppers as well, which was another source of air hidden leaks. My i12s got a hidden leak after just a few years with handpump only. It was the first time I pumped up the floor an extra pound based on Hobie advice here, but I guess that was meant for the newer simplified designs.

I question how well the boat designs can drain water using only the forward drive well. If you are heavy in the rear or center, that can puddle deeply. The only non board inflato pedal alternative I know of is the eccentric PK365 who doesn't want to ship to your or my locations. I think you were lucky with seams and have little alternative but the simplified easy draining board designs.

I have related experience with a paddle only sit down board that looks like an iTrek 12.5. I guess it took side waves nicely, but head on the waves would slam into my cargo. I lingered in an area with 4 or 5 foot breaking waves without aggressively paddling, and had some trouble. They would try to surf me but it just stood on the nose threatening to crash. Switching into the waves, they would kind of surf me backwards. So it gets by, but has neither the surfability of a board or the wave piercing of a boat hull.

Well, I am about to compensate for a missing iT11 with my old fashioned boat-like white water paddle kayak. It has 16 large auto bailers and yet is the only inflatable advertised for surfability. Today the waves are a measily 6-9 feet, but tomorrow forecast 8-12 when I will try to shake the covid cobwebs off.